If you believe that climate change is a major threat to our current way of life, then it makes sense as an individual investor to stay away from companies that generate greenhouse gases or deny that climate change is a problem. Whatever return on your investment you don't make as a result is yours to sacrifice.

Portfolio managers and index fund managers don't have it so easy. Their obligation is to make their investment funds as much money as they possibly can, and while energy companies have lost a lot of money lately, many analysts think they are very cheap now and potentially lucrative in the coming years.

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Legally, these men and women who manage the largest tranches of cash in the world cannot choose to divest from energy companies, or any other company, because their obligation is to make money for their investors. That is until you change your analysis.

Jagdeep Singh Bachher, chief investment officer of the University of California regents, said his investment team chose to look at fossil fuel investments with the assumption that climate change is happening and that it will impact businesses and investments. The investment team's perspective no longer assumes the climate won't change, they assume it will.

That slight shift means high-yielding fossil fuel stocks are not as attractive as they are now.

"We have learned that when we consider sustainability as a risk factor, our investment analysis improves," Bachher said in an op-ed. "We are confident that aligning with UC stakeholder community values that consider climate change, sustainability, diversity, economic fairness and transparency will improve our portfolio's bottom line."

After selling all investments in coal and oil sands, Bachher said that money is going to companies that will fight or mitigate climate change.

"We believe the performance of such investments will unlock billions and potentially trillions of dollars within those key investor communities to help companies bridge the gap between innovation and commercialization, and speed the distribution of technology that reduces global greenhouse gas emissions," he wrote.

Simply shifting perspective and assumptions can change how you invest. In this case, Bachher believes the reality of climate change requires a shift in investing philosophy, not for moral reasons, but for profitability reasons.

Will divestment make a difference in how companies operate? Past movements have shown mixed results. Will acknowledging climate change is real change how you invest? It certainly must.